Hearing protector headset

ABSTRACT

An improved circum-aural headset in which a headband is movably attached to an ear enclosure housing. The ear enclosure is adapted to be in substantially air-tight resilient contact with the region of the head about the ear. A shaft is attached to and projects axially of the ear enclosure housing and one end of the headband having an elongated over-sized complementary slot is engaged to the shaft. A pair of resilient members are each mounted on the shaft on either side of the headband. The enclosure housing is provided with adequate access to the shaft for engaging the headband and the resilient members to the shaft. A threaded member is provided for securing the headband and the resilient members to the shaft and for applying a predetermined compressive force to the resilient members. The combined action of the over-sized headband slot and the resiliently applied force permits limited universal motion between the headband and the ear enclosure housing.

. nited States Patent [191 Dostourian [451 Sept. 10, 1974 HEARINGPROTECTOR HEADSET [75] Inventor:

[73] Assignee: American Optical Corporation,

Southbridge, Mass.

[22] Filed: Nov. 3, 1972 [21] Appl. No.2 303,452

Harry Dostourian, Worcester, Mass.

[52] US. Cl. 2/209, 179/182R [51] Int. Cl H041 1/10 [58] Field of Search2/209; 179/156 R, 182 R;

Beguin et a1 2/209 Primary Examiner-Jordan Franklin AssistantExaminer-Peter Nerbun Attorney, Agent, or Firm-l-loward R. Berkenstock,Jr.; William C. Nealon [57] ABSTRACT An improved circum-aural headset inwhich a headband is movably attached to an ear enclosure housing. Theear enclosure is adapted to be in substantially airtight resilientcontact with the region of the head about the ear. A shaft is attachedto and projects axially of the ear enclosure housing and one end of theheadband having an elongated over-sized complementary slot is engaged tothe shaft. A pair of resilient members are each mounted on the shaft oneither side of the headband. The enclosure housing is provided withadequate access to the shaft for engaging the headband and the resilientmembers to the shaft. A threaded member is provided for securing theheadband and the resilient members to the shaft and for applying apredetermined compressive force to the resilient members. The combinedaction of the oversized headband slot and the resiliently applied forcepermits limited universal motion between the headband and the earenclosure housing.

9 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures HEARING PROTECTOR HEADSET BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION Hearing protector ear enclosures are currently being providedwith elongated or elliptically-shaped openings into which the earauricle is inserted for providing a seal closely around the region ofthe ear. This arrangement requires the ear enclosure to be rotationallyoriented according to the configuration of the wearers head for properfitting. Further, in order to achieve comfortable fitting, and optimumacoustical sealing it is necessary to provide for tilting of the earenclosures relative to the headbandstructure. The tilting motion permitsadaptation of the ear enclosures to the individuals head and acomfortable degree of motion of the head while wearing the headset.

Heretofore, in order to permit pivotal and rotational movement of theheadband with respect to the circumaural enclosure, it was foundnecessary to attach separate pivoting and rotating devices between theear enclosure and the headband. US. Pat. Nos. 3,579,640 and 3,505,684herein incorporated by reference disclose and describe prior art devicesfor accomplishing this purpose. While these devices have been foundfunctionally adequate and suitable to the purpose intended, they bothinvolve the assembly of many individual pieces with concomitant cost anddifficulties in manufacture. The present invention provides a headsetwhich can be worn in any position while excluding the heretoforerequired pivoting and tilting mechanisms.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an improvedcircum-aural headset.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improvedcircum-aural headset hearing protector.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a circum-aural headsethearing protector having limited universal motion between the headbandand the ear enclosure housing.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In furtherance of the foregoing objects and inaccordance with the present invention, there is provided an improvedcircum-aural headset. The headset has a headband which is movablyattached to an ear enclosure housing,,the housing being adapted to be insubstantially air-tight resilient contact with the region of the headabout the ear. The improvement in the headset is directed to a shaftwhich is attached to an projects axially of the ear enclosure housing.The headband has an elongated over-sized complementary slot located atone end which is used to engage the shaft.-

In addition to engaging the shaft with the headband, there is provided apair of resilient members each mounted on the shaft on either side ofthe headband. The ear enclosure housing is structured so as to permitadequate access to the shaft so that the headband and resilient membersmay be engaged and mounted thereon respectively. Means for securing theheadband and resilient members to the shaft and for applying apredetermined compressive force to the resilient memhers is suitablyaffixed to the housingThis attachment structure permits a'limiteduniversal motion between the headband and the ear enclosure, thusmaintaining an efficient acoustical seal with respect to the wearershead.

For a better understanding of the present invention together with otherand further objects thereof, refer ence is had to the followingdescription taken in connection with the accompanying drawings. Itsscope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view 'ofan improved hearing protector having a fragmentary cross-sectionalportion to better show details of construction;

FIG. 2 is a sectional exploded view showing parts of the attachmentstructure between the headband and the ear enclosure housing;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view having a fragmentary cross-sectionalportion of an alternative embodiment of the invention.

The drawings are intended to be illustrative of the applicants inventionand not delimiting of its scope. Similar parts have like numbers in thedifferent views and standard symbology is used throughout.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS.

Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the improved hearing protectorheadset, only one side of which is shown, includes a flexible yieldableheadband 21 attached to an ear enclosure housing .10 adapted forsound-attenuation purposes. The headband is preferably of spring steelor other yieldable material capable of exerting a desired inwardpressure on the earenclosures when being worn. Headband 21 is extensiblein its intermediate portion so as to adapt to the head of the wearer.The details of this construction are not shown as they are known tothose ordinarily skilled in the art.

An end portion 14 of headband 21 is shown as ex tending throughapertures in the ear enclosure housing 10 and engaging a shaft or studl3 integrally formed internally of housing 10. The stud member 13 iscentrally axially projecting inwardly toward the ear of the wearer andengages end portion 14 through a complementary slot 14a. Slot 14a issomewhat over-sized and elongated to permit both vertical and horizontaltranslation.

movement between'stud l3 and end portion 14. Of course, the verticalelongation of slot 14a is of significant extent in order to permitvertical adjustment between headband 21 and ear enclosure housing 10 foradapting to the varying dimensions of wearers heads.

The housing includes a substantially conical intermediate wall portion11 extending toward a dome portion 22 integrally formed and extendingfrom the outermost central area of housing wall 11. Apertures l2 and 12aare provided in the walls of dome 22 to permit access of end portion 14to stud 13 thereby permitting engagement of these members. The loweraperture 120 is necessary to allow for extensive adjustment in thevertical direction between end portion 14 and housing 10. Asound-attenuating polymeric material 19 is disposed internally of wallportion 11 and an annular seal 20 is provided about its outer peripheryto permit substantially air-tight resilient contact with the region ofthe head about the ear. Ear enclosure housing 10 which may be adequatelydescribed as a cup-shaped member having a dome portion 22 protrudingfrom the bottom is preferably of an integrally molded design fabricatedfrom an injection-moldable material. It may, however, be fabricated fromseparate component parts; for example, dome 22 might constitute aseparate member which is attached to the housing wall 11 by appropriatemeans.

To better appreciate and understand the present invention, referencewill now be had to FIG. 2 which is an exploded view of the detailscomprising the novel attachment between the headband 21 and housing 10.This discussion involves not only the structural features of the membersbut the means and method of assembly whereby a clear picture of theimproved pivoting and tilting function are made evident. Dome 22 has anintegrally molded stud l3 projecting centrally and axially inward of thehousing 10. An internal bore of stud 13 is appropriately threaded forengagement with securing means 18 when the assembly is completed. Afirst resilient member 15 fabricated from rubber or other polymericmaterial having the desired elasticity and coefficient of friction isaxially mounted on stud 13 and is essentially cylindrical in geometry.End portion 14 is then inserted through aperture 12 of dome 22 in acanted manner so that slot 14a may be slipped over and engage stud 13.After engagement of slot 14a and stud 13, end portion 14 may then bemoved vertically through the diametrically opposed aperture 12a of dome22. Upon engagement of end portion 14 to stud 13, the second resilientmember 16 of the same material and geometry as resilient member 15 isplaced on stud l3 protruding above it to allow for the desired amount ofcompression to be applied by disk member 17.

After engagement of slot 14a and resilient members 15 and 16 with stud13, the disk member 17 is axially applied by means of bolt 18 whichextends through a central aperture in disk 17 to threadably engage theinner threaded bore of stud 13. As bolt 18 is extended into the bore ofstud l3, disc 17 progressively applies a compressive force to thecombination of resilient members 15 and 16 and end portion 14. In thepreferred embodiment of FIG. 1, this compressive force is limited by theengagement of the outer periphery of disk 17, with shoulders formed onthat inner portion of housing wall 11 adjacent to the dome 22. It must,of course, be realized that other securing means and force-limitingdevices might be utilized within the context of this invention. It isnow evident that end portion 14 of headband 21 may be moved in avertical direction upon application of an appropriate force dependentupon the coefficient of friction between the resilient members 15 and 16and end portion 14 and the compressive force applied to these members.Further, it can be appreciated that due to the placement of resilientmembers 15 and 16 on either side of end portion 14, it may be tiltedabout a fulcrum located on the axis of stud or shaft 13. Rotationalmovement of headband 21 about shaft 13 is also permitted dependent uponthe extent of the arcuate sector apertures 12 and 12a formed in the wallof dome 22. In this regard, it is noted that if the protector is to beused in a back-band position, i.e., behind the head, the wearer merelylifts the earcups a slight distance from his head and rotates the entireunit by hand until the desired position is obtained. After this, theearcups are released and the annular inner member 20 conforms to thewearer's head in the new position. In this application, it is notnecessary that the ear enclosures be round as long as the length of thehousing equals the width for non-circular ear enclosures.

Briefly, to reiterate the operational advantages of the presentinvention, since the headband end portion 14 is now sandwiched betweentwo flexible resilient members 15 and 16, the housing 10 is allowed totake any desired position automatically to conform to any variant headcontour and also provides vibration isolation between headband 21 andhousing 10. This ease of pivoting and tilting of the housing 10 withrespect to the headband 21 allows the maintenance of a tight acousticalseal to the head with a minimum of discomfort to the wearer. It furthercomprises an economical and reliable ear enclosure attachment assemblyproviding distinct advantages over the prior art.

In FIG. 3, there is shown an alternative embodiment of the applicantsinvention. Referring to FIG. 1, it will be noted that when bolt 18 issecured to shaft or stud 13, it is necessary that the resilientacousticalattenuation material 19 be absent from the internal surface ofthe housing 10. This necessitates a last, final assembly step in thecompletion of the headset and, to that extend, introduces an additionalmanual or machine-operated step. If the structural design of theembodiment of FIG. 3 is followed, this last step may be eliminated. InFIG. 3, the housing 30 has a wall portion 31 of generally cup-shaped orgeometry. Contrary to the design of the preferred embodiment of FIG. 1,the dome portion 37 is not now an integral structure but rathercomprises a final cap member 39 which is secured to a stud 33 extendingoutwardly and axially of housing wall 31. Simply stated, the device ofFIG. 1 is re-designed so that the stud member now extends outwardly fromthe housing 31 instead of inwardly from the dome 22 of FIG. 1.

The design of FIG. 3 permits the assembly of end portion 34 andresilient member 35 and 36 to stud 33 completely externally of the earenclosure housing 30; thus, the acoustical-attenuating polymericsubstance 40 may be applied to the internal surface of housing 30 priorto attachment of end portion 34. This may be appreciated by thefollowing review of assembly procedure. A first resilient member 36 ismounted to stud 33 projecting axially of housing wall 31. A slot 340 inend portion 34 is then engaged to the stud 33 and, finally, secondresilient member 35 is also mounted thereon. End portion 34 andresilient members 35 and 36 are secured to stud 33 and the requiredcompressive force is applied by the securing of cap member 39 to stud 33by means of bolt 38. As bolt 38 is drawn down by threadably engaging aninternal bore of stud 33, the internal surface of cap 39 engages theupper annular surface of resilient member thereby producing the desireddegree of freedom of the headband 21 with respect to the ear enclosurehousing 30. Cap member 39 is driven by bolt 38 through engagement of theunder-shoulder of bolt 38 head. Upon completion of the assembly,apertures 32 and 32a formed in walls extending from housing wall 31 toand engaging cap member 39 provide for limited rotational movement ofend portion 34 with respect to the housing 30.

Thus, the present invention has provided an improved circum-auralheadset of economic and reliable design wherein limited universal motionis permitted between the headband and the ear enclosure housing. Whilethere has been described what are at present considered to be thepreferred embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious to thoseskilled in the art thatvarious changes and modifications may be madetherein without departing from the invention and it is thereforeintended that the appended claims cover all such changes andmodifications that fall within the true spirit and scope of theinvention.

I claim:

1. An improved circum-aural headset comprising a generally flexibleheadband with at least one generally C-shaped sound attenuating earenclosure housing attached to the headset and adapted so as to be insubstantially air tight resilient contact with the region of the headabout the ear when said headset is in position on a wearers head, saidheadband having a generally straight end portion and a generallyelongated slot disposed in at least one of said end portions,

said earcup being provided with a dome portion generally centrallythereof and projecting outwardly of said cup said dome portion furtherhaving a pair of oppositely disposed apertures formed therein permittingsaid end portions of said headband to project therethrough, said domeportion further including shaft means projecting axially of said domeportion inwardly toward said cup portion, said shaft means beingslideably received by said slot of said headband,-

a pair of generally cylindrical resilient members having a bore axiallydisposed therein, said bore having a diameter at least as large as saidshaft means, said members being disposed upon said shaft on oppositesides of said headband when said shaft means is disposed therein.

means securing said'resilient members on said headband and said shaftunder compression to permit rotational, tilting and pivoting motion ofsaid headband with respect to said housing.

2. The headset of claim 1 wherein said shaft is a cylindrically-shapedmember having an internally threaded bore, said resilient members havepredetermined uncompressed lengths, and said securing means includes abolt threadably engaged to the inner bore of said shaft and a diskmember mounted thereon for applying said predetermined compressive forceto said resilient members.

3. The headset of claim 2 wherein said disk member is mounted to saidbolt through a centrally located aperture and engages said bolt head,and the movement of said disk axially of said shaft is limited byengagement of the periphery of said disk with an internal surface ofsaid housing.

4. The headset of claim 1 wherein said housing and said dome are of onepiece integrally molded plastic.

5. The invention of claim 1 wherein said housing is substantiallycup-shaped and said shaft extends centrally axially outwards therefrom,said shaft has an internally threaded bore for engagement with saidsecuring means, and said securing means includes a disk member forapplying said compressive force which is connected to said shaftexternally of said housing.

6. The invention of claim 5 wherein an annular wall member disposedabout said shaft extends outwardly from said cup-shaped housing forminga dome-shaped structure when in engagement with said disk member, andwherein said wall contains an arcuate sector aperture therein forengagement of said headband on said shaft and permitting rotational,tipping and pivoting motion of said headband with respect to saidhousing.

7. The headset of claim 5 wherein said disk member has inwardlyprojecting wall portions for engagement with said housing when connectedto said shaft, and wherein said wall portions contain an aperture topermit engagement of said headband on said shaft and said rotational,tilting and pivoting motion of said headband with respect to saidhousing.

8. The headset of claim 4 wherein said resilient members are made ofresilient polymeric materials.

9. The headset of claim 8 wherein said resilient members are made ofrubber.

1. An improved circum-aural headset comprising a generally flexibleheadband with at least one generally C-shaped sound attenuating earenclosure housing attached to the headset and adapted so as to be insubstantially air tight resilient contact with the region of the headabout the ear when said headset is in position on a wearers head, saidheadband having a generally straight end portion and a generallyelongated slot disposed in at least one of said end portions, saidearcup being provided with a dome portion generally centrally thereofand projecting outwardly of said cup said dome portion further having apair of oppositely disposed apertures formed therein permitting said endportions of said headband to project therethrough, said dome portionfurther including shaft means projecting axially of said dome portioninwardly toward said cup portion, said shaft means being slideablyreceived by said slot of said headband, a pair of generally cylindricalresilient members having a bore axially disposed therein, said borehaving a diameter at least as large as said shaft means, said membersbeing disposed upon said shaft on opposite sides of said headband whensaid shaft means is disposed therein. means securing said resilientmembers on said headband and said shaft under compression to permitrotational, tilting and pivoting motion of said headband with respect tosaid housing.
 2. The headset of claim 1 wherein said shaft is acylindrically-shaped member having an internally threaded bore, saidresilient members have predetermined uncompressed lengths, and saidsecuring means includes a bolt threadably engaged to the inner bore ofsaid shaft and a disk member mounted thereon for applying saidpredetermined compressive force to said resilient members.
 3. Theheadset of claim 2 wherein said disk member is mounted to said boltthrough a centrally located aperture and engages said bolt head, and themovement of said disk axially of said shaft is limited by engagement ofthe periphery of said disk with an internal surface of said housing. 4.The headset of claim 1 wherein said housing and said dome are of onepiece integrally molded plastic.
 5. The invention of claim 1 whereinsaid housing is substantially cup-shaped and said shaft extendscentrally axially outwards therefrom, said shaft has an internallythreaded bore for engagement with said securing means, and said securingmeans includes a disk member for applying said compressive force whichis connected to said shaft externally of said housing.
 6. The inventionof claim 5 wherein an annular wall member disposed about said shaftextends outwardly from said cup-shaped housing forming a dome-shapedstructure when in engagement with said disk member, and wherein saidwall contains an arcuate sector aperture therein for engagement of saidheadband on said shaft and permitting rotational, tipping and pivotingmotion of said headband with respect to said housing.
 7. The headset ofclaim 5 wherein said disk member has inwardly projecting wall portionsfor engagement with said housing when connected to said shaft, andwherein said wall portions contain an aperture to permit engagement ofsaid headband on said shaft and said rotational, tilting and pivotingmotion of said headband with respect to said housing.
 8. The headset ofclaim 4 wherein said resilient members are made of resilient polymericmaterials.
 9. The headset of claim 8 wherein said resilient members aremade of rubber.